One in nine adults have no qualifications

Analysis of official figures shows wide variations between constituencies, splitting country into ‘haves and have-nots’ One in nine adults have no qualifications, according to an analysis of official figures which highlights wide variations between different parts of the country. In some parliamentary constituencies such as Glasgow East and Birmingham Hodge Hill, more than a third of people of working age have no qualifications, compared with just 2% in other areas, according to the study. The analysis reveals pockets of educational underachievement next door to highly educated neighbourhoods. The UCU, the college lecturers’ union, analysed figures from the Office for National Statistics showing the proportions of adults aged 16-64 with no qualifications last year. The union found sharp divides between constituencies – for example, people living in Newcastle upon Tyne Central are twice as likely to be unqualified as their neighbours in Newcastle upon Tyne North. Of the 20 constituencies with the highest percentage of people with no qualifications, the West Midlands accounts for eight, and has four in the top 10. There is a clear east-west divide in London, the union found: of the 20 worst-performing constituencies in the capital, three-quarters are in the east. In Scotland, Glasgow has three constituencies ranked in the worst 10 in Britain for people lacking qualifications. In contrast, all of Edinburgh’s constituencies are well above average, with fewer than one in 10 people having no qualifications. The UCU warned that the figures showed Britain was divided into “the haves and the have-nots”. Overall, the findings are that 11.3% of British adults do not have any qualifications. In England, the figure is 11.1%, in Wales it is 13.3% and in Scotland 12.3%. The UCU analysed the qualification rates for 632 parliamentary constituencies in England, Scotland and Wales. The union argued that people in areas with the lowest levels of qualifications were likely to suffer most from government policies that would restrict access to education. These policies include allowing universities to charge higher tuition fees and scrapping the education maintenance allowance. The UCU general secretary, Sally Hunt, said: “We have two Britains divided between the educational haves and have-nots, and we have cities and counties where people with access to education are living alongside those with far fewer opportunities. Education is central to our country’s future, yet in some places thousands of people still have no qualifications. There is a danger that children growing up in certain areas will have their ambition blunted and never realise their full potential.” Other data published on Thursday shows that rising numbers of graduates are choosing to work for themselves or take professional qualifications after leaving university. Figures from the Higher Education Statistics Agency show that 4.4% of those who left university last summer were self-employed or working as freelances six months after graduation – an increase on the previous year. Jeevan Vasagar guardian.co.uk

Posted by on July 22, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.